Jide previously sold its vision of desktop Android as a cheap, lightweight computing solution for individuals and businesses alike. Earlier this year, it even previewed a version of Remix OS that lived on a smartphone but could power a PC, just like Microsoft’s Continuum. Back then, Jide co-founder David Ko told The Verge that the wide range of Android apps available and the free price of download would attract customers to Remix OS. “If your phone can replace [your PC], it’s a huge saving, and has a big impact to productivity,” said Ko.

This wasn’t enough, though, and Jide’s vision has had to fight against a number of factors, including Google’s fledgling efforts to put Android apps on a Chromebook; the increased popularity of the Chromebook itself, especially in education; and Apple’s push to position the iPad as a desktop replacement. (Arguably, the latter shouldn’t have affected Jide’s sales pitch given the difference in price, but it certainly wouldn’t have helped the company grab any customers in the West.)

Personally, I have a slightly different take on why the product line was not successful. The idea of an Android desktop PC that I could attach to my television was an interesting one, so I bought a Jide Remix Mini last year on Amazon. I have say that it was one of the worst tech purchases of my life. Straight out of the box, it never worked correctly. The device was slow, clumsy, and had a serious issue with WiFi connection. I never even managed to get the device to do the initial update to the firmware. By the time I got done trying to make the device work, the return window for sending it back for a refund had lapsed and it is currently sitting in my stuff-to-sell-on-eBay box.

If you look at some of the reviews on Amazon, you’ll see a recurring theme of mentions of poor performance and poor support from the company, with remarks like “Don’t waste your time or money with this empty promise of a device” and “Don’t waste your money.”

While Jide might like to blame the other marketplace factors, in reality, this was poorly designed product that never delivered on its initial promise.

Last week, Amazon finally released its long-promised Instant Video app for Android. (There was a previous app a few years ago available for the Sony Dash, but that one was removed a while back.)

The new app is designed for phones, although it is working on some tablets. It is a somewhat complicated install procedure because you first must install the Amazon Shopping app, then download the one for Instant Video.

I was able to install the app on my Samsung Note 2 with no problem. I could not, however, get it to work on my Samsung Note 8.

Both Teleread and The Digital Read have posted workarounds for the flash video problem in the past. Today, the MobileRead forum led me to another install method detailed on the Droid Life site. This install involves directly downloading the Instant Video .apk file from Amazon.

I tried the Droid Life method and it installed correctly on my Samsung Note 8 with no problem. 🙂

Hopefully, one of the methods will enable you to get the app working correctly on your device.

Amazon is giving away over $100 worth of Android apps in their app store. The apps, which Amazon dubs “Essential,” are free Thursday, July 31, 2014 and Friday, August 1, 2014.

There is a nice variety among the 30 apps offered. These include productivity programs such as an alarm clock, a PDF viewer, a photo editor, a calendar, even workout and travel apps, There are also apps for math and music, games, and language coaching. Instapaper and the Oxford Advanced Learning Dictionary are included among the selections.